His real name was Christopher Wallace, but he went by the names Notorious
B.I.G. and Biggie Smalls.

I have to preface this story by the fact that I am not a fan. I don't own any
of this guy's CDs, and I don't listen to his music. He did not speak for me, and
I felt no affinity. This is not to judge.

However, in this man's repertoire were such ditties as Me & My
Bitch, Machine Gun Funk, Kick in the Door
and You're Nobody (Til Somebody Kills You). His two albums were
titled, "Ready to Die," and "Life
After Death." He was murdered. I am not
shocked.

In early 1997 there was a warrant for his arrest, stemming from an assault
charge. He allegedly beat up a concert promoter. He was also ordered to pay over
$40,000 to a man called Nathaniel Banks, who claims that he was sent to pick up
Biggie from a cancelled show back in 1995. He said, and the judge agreed, that
Biggie and his entourage beat him. At the time of Biggie's death, he was under
investigation by the FBI for an alleged connection to a New York organized
crime family.

On Saturday March 9th of 1997, Biggie was attending the 11th
annual Soul Train Music Awards at the Peterson
Automotive Museum on Wilshire Boulevard in LA. Other
guests included Busta Rhymes, Heavy D, Da Brat, Yo Yo, Sean "Puffy"
Combs, and of course, Biggie.

The party really got going around 9:30 or 10:00. Biggie was sitting at a
table near the dance floor. Findadeath.com friend Jackie
Smith was there that night. Jackie met Biggie in the Peterson, and said
that he was "high as a kite," and pretty cool. She also tells me
that she was standing on Wilshire Boulevard "when we heard the "caps
getting busted," meaning the shots were fired. Jackie says that
everyone went apeshit, and scattered like roaches.

Just after midnight, the event was becoming too
crowded, and the LA fire marshals were called in and shut the party down. By
12:45, the street was crowded with people leaving the event from the front
doors. Biggie and Puffy came out in the back of the
building, to the valet
parking. They discussed going to another party, and
their cars arrived. Puffy left, and Biggie and two friends got in to a GMC
Suburban. They drove out of the garage and up to the light at Wilshire and
Fairfax, just to the left of where this
photo was taken. (Sorry, I should have done better
research.) The light was red, and Biggie was in the passenger seat. While
waiting at the light, a dark full size car pulled up to the right side of
Biggie's car and shot 6 to 10 bullets into the car. The driver took Biggie
straight to Emergency
Room at Cedars
Sinai Medical Center. Thank you Terri Rios, for the
photos.

At 1:15 Sunday morning, Biggie was pronounced dead. He was 24. He seemed like
such a lovely man.

Eyewitnesses described the lone gunman as an African American wearing a suit
and bow tie, similar, police say, to the attire favored by Nation of Islam
members. (But why? They're so nice.)

Fans turned the sidewalk
nearest to where Biggie was slain, into a memorial.

Biggie's body was shipped back to New York City, and received by the
Frank
E. Campbell Funeral Home. He was dressed in a white
suit and a white hat. Mary J. Blige, Celine Dion, Queen Latifah, Lil Kim and
others gathered to pay their last respects. Okay, I'm kidding about Celine. She
was busy.

Biggie's body was then taken via hearse to the streets of his old Brooklyn
neighborhood, Fort Greene, giving fans a chance to say goodbye. It was going well
until some onlookers got a bit too carried away in their grief. Supposedly
prompted by the police and their use of excessive security, the onlookers began
jumping on cars. The police used pepper spray and arrested 6.

The murder is still not solved and police suspect a former officer, David
Mack, who is already in prison for bank robbery, for arranging the
"professional hit." Supposedly this hit was based on a feud between
East and West Coast rappers. Also arrested is Marion "Suge" Knight,
founder of Death Row Records. Police impounded a vehicle at Knight's house,
which matched witness' description of the shooter's car. The gunman is possibly
identified as Amir Muhammad. He and Mack were classmates, and he disappeared
shortly after visiting Mack in prison just after Christmas 1997.

Biggie was supposedly cremated. Rest in peace. Please.
Jackie Smith tells me that Biggie's ashes were divided in 3. His mother,
his ex girlfriend Lil' Kim, and his wife Faith Evans. At the time of
Biggie's death, he was dating Chali Baltimore. Busy Biggie. Thanks
for all the info, Jackie.

On a completely unrelated note, I went to see the film Sleepy Hollow the
other day. Look at my ticket stub.
I had to laugh.